Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 573 Visiting the Marquis Mansion at Night to Discuss
Rongguo Mansion,
The front yard of the concierge,

"Grandma, grandma, why are you in such a hurry to leave?"

Wang Xifeng left the opera house quickly, and Ping'er followed behind him in a panic. She didn't know why the second mistress was crazy. She took a nap, suddenly woke up, put on her robe and ran out.

Wang Xifeng tightened her clothes and walked out of the yard towards the main entrance.

"You damn girl, I asked you to remember the time, but you fell asleep right after me. It's so late at night. You asked my aunt to take care of me,"

"Grandma, it's all slave's fault. How could I know that slave can sleep on her own."

Before Wang Xifeng finished speaking, Ping'er muttered immediately. Angry, Wang Xifeng reached out and pulled Ping'er's ear and twisted it hard.
"Okay, I haven't even entered the door yet, but you dare to talk back. The food and wine I asked you to buy were said to be waiting for the Marquis to arrive. Look at what time it is,"

Ping'er curled his lips aggrievedly, not daring to refute any more.
"Yes, grandma, it's all the slave's fault,"

"Follow up."

Wang Xifeng trotted to the concierge in a hurry, and the steward hurriedly came out to greet her.

"Master Hou, are you okay? Why don't you go back and ask Zixiang to take a look at you?"

Wang Xifeng was also quite nervous. If this matter became public, Mrs. You and her sister-in-law might have no way of survival.

"Okay, I don't know what kind of thing it is. Let me ask you, Sister-in-law You, can you arrange to stay in the northwest courtyard."

"Master Hou, I would like to send my regards to you."

Ning Bian suggested carefully from his side.

quickly,

Ping'er, who was behind him, felt very clear, so he came over and asked,
"Grandma, it seems that the Marquis has gone to Grandma's yard to the west again. In the past few days, the Marquis has been there a little too frequently. I don't know if Grandma can hold on."

Wang Xifeng didn't care about the boys standing with their heads down and asked,

Seeing a group of wimps, an angry Wang Xifeng cursed,

"Yes, Lord Marquis, follow and drive."

The steward, who was still feeling relaxed, suddenly broke out in cold sweat on his forehead when he heard the Second Mistress’s inquiry. The yard to the west was a little deserted and no one lived there, but the yard where Miss Lin and the eldest grandma lived was there. Mr. Hou went to It's not just me, a slave, who can know who I am.
"Go back to grandma. I don't know where Lord Marquis has gone. Only a slave can know. Grandma, please forgive me."

Wang Xifeng felt irritated after hearing this and cursed angrily,

"I entered the house and stayed for more than an hour before leaving again."

The servants were so frightened that they immediately knelt down and even said that they didn't know. The steward didn't dare to speak casually. How could they have the chance to answer.

Ping'er also knew the secret of the matter between the Marquis and the eldest grandma, and the grandma was also anxious. The master and the servant discussed it, quickly turned a corner, took the west path, and walked towards Li Wan's courtyard.

When the steward heard that the second mistress was asking about Mr. Hou, he felt relieved. He didn't know why, so he immediately reported back.

Northwest of Ningrong Street,
Zhang Jinyu rode a horse and walked leisurely on the street. He put his right hand on his waist and touched it again and again. Not to mention, it looked like a bone-scraping steel knife. It was okay to sleep on the horse before, but now he is riding Every horse has a sore waist and backache. Women are good, but they need to be more restrained in the future.

"Greetings to Second Grandma, Second Grandma, where are you going in a hurry?"

After the steward finished speaking, he was so frightened that he lowered his head and did not dare to speak. He was bitten to death without knowing it.

The group of people arrived at the Hou Mansion.
The steward had been waiting in front of the door with his people for a long time. When he saw Mr. Hou coming, he hurriedly came forward.

"Grandma, as you said, this slave is not with you yet."

"Okay, nothing happened. Let the girl take a blind look and drink medicine. If you don't know, you might think you have some illness. Walk faster."

The concierge was startled, wondering what was going on with the second mistress. He was so panicked that he called out all the concierge boys.

"Has Mr. Marquis been here before?"

Ping'er's eyes turned red with grievance. No matter what she said, she couldn't do this. Seeing Ping'er's appearance, Wang Xifeng felt irritable and felt better.

"Thanks, grandma."

Wang Xifeng frowned after hearing this, "No, that's not right. His little enemy has been here a long time ago. He stayed there for an hour, whether it was his sister-in-law or Daiyu's. He made an appointment with him in the morning and didn't eat the banquet he prepared.
"Do you know where the Marquis went and stayed for an hour? Is it the courtyard to the west?"

"Stop talking, follow up, and go to the west to have a look. If Mrs. You discovers the matter about the Marquis, we need to discuss it carefully. This matter must not be spread outside."

Ping'er covered her mouth and looked at the small courtyard to the west with some horror. When the Marquis went to Grandma's place, he must have a good time, but Mrs. You was there, and she didn't know anything when they met.

"get out."

After listening to the second mistress's words, the steward and the servant kowtowed as if they had been granted amnesty, and then left without a trace.

Speaking of this, Ping'er suddenly widened his eyes and spoke much louder. Wang Xifeng slapped Ping'er on the shoulder and cursed in a low voice,
: "Why are you shouting? Are you afraid that others won't know? Look at you, you can't do what you're told."

"Back to grandma, the yard has been tidied up. The slave girl told Mrs. You, but Mrs. You disliked the desertedness there, so she told the slave girl that she wanted to live with the eldest grandma for a few days. Come on, second grandma, Mrs. You can be here Grandma lives there."

"Got it, grandma."

"What about people?"

"No, grandma, I forgot about this."

Zhang Jinyu was still a little unhappy. Looking at the concierge who looked like a slave, he seemed to be brought from outside the customs.
"It's so late at night, who do you want to be? Everything is fine in the house."

"Go back to grandma, I've been here before,"

"Why, I didn't go to your place, you were worried."

Wang Xifeng glared at the concierge fiercely, looking like a man, then looked at the boys around and asked,
"Do you guys know?"

Zhang Jinyu's face turned dark red, and she waved her hand angrily.

Manager Wang heard the Marquis's impatient tone, shrank his body again, and replied,
"Back to the Marquis, everything is fine in the house. The old lady and my wife have not gone out since they returned to the house in the afternoon. The captain of the guard and his people have been patrolling the house. But tonight,

Tonight, Mr. Feng, who claimed to be the Prime Minister of Dali Temple, came to the door and was waiting for the Marquis in Dongyuan, saying that he had a secret matter to discuss. "

"What? Let's discuss secret matters."

Zhang Jinyu got off the horse and threw the whip to Ning Bian. She was extremely surprised when the steward said that Lord Feng, the prime minister of Dali Temple, had come to his house to discuss secret matters.

Isn't this the civil official's side? Mr. Ge recommended the personnel for the three-level interrogation to Your Majesty. What's going on? If he can come to his house, it's possible that Mr. Lu and others have figured it out and discussed the affairs of Ningguo Mansion with him.

"Yes, Lord Marquis, that's what the person who came here said. It's not like it was a joke when I saw Lord Feng. I was afraid of delaying Lord Marquis's important event, so I invited him into the house and sat in the Dongyuan room to wait."

"It's interesting. This discussion in the middle of the night is said to be a secret matter. Come on, go in and meet him."

Zhang Jinyu became interested. The civil servants and Wu Xun had secret matters, so he walked into the mansion and went straight to Dongyuan.

I saw that the living room of the main house in Dongyuan was brightly lit, and there were guards patrolling the courtyard. They were all equipped with soldiers and armor. Wei Yong was showing his attentiveness.

He led Ningbian and his soldiers into the courtyard.
When he arrived at the door of the house, he pushed the door open and saw a middle-aged civil servant sitting there quietly, with a calm face, a high nose and deep eyes. He was wearing a blue official robe embroidered with gold thread and a flower-feathered official hat on his head.

Although his expression was a little hesitant and anxious, as a civil servant he was proud of himself, and his expression could not be deceived. Who else could it be if he was not the Prime Minister of Dali Temple, Feng Yongwen, Lord Feng?

Laughing out loud,

"Oh, it's Mr. Feng who's here. He's a rare visitor. Why are you still here at this late hour? Why do you need to do this for something important?"

Zhang Jinyu walked over quickly, speaking politely. Feng Yongwen came back to his senses. When he saw that Mr. Hou was here, he still dared to sit down and stood up hurriedly.

"Master Marquis, you are back. I came uninvited and disturbed you for a while. Please forgive me, Master Marquis."

Then he gave another salute, and there was no flaw in the etiquette.

Seeing this, Zhang Jinyu was holding his hands in vain, and he must ask for something from others. What could he ask for? It didn't look like he was talking about Ningguo Mansion.

"Master Feng, you are very polite. I am very hospitable. Please sit down quickly. Someone is here to change tea for Master Feng and serve some pastries." "Yes, Lord Marquis."

Ning Bian responded and immediately asked the maid to go down to make tea and change water.

After a while, tea and pastries were brought out one by one. Zhang Jinyu was not polite and took a piece of it and put it in his mouth. He was indeed feeling hungry.

"Master Feng, come and try the Hou Mansion's craftsmanship. We don't have so many rules. Just settle down when you come, don't you think so."

The words were said casually, but there was an underlying temptation. Feng Yongwen didn't know it. He paused and said with a smile,
"The Marquis is still cheerful, but I will be rude when I am a subordinate."

After saying that, he pinched a piece of pastry and put it into his mouth, and started eating it slowly and gracefully. After the pastry was in his stomach and he drank the tea,

Zhang Jinyu couldn't help but ask,

"Master Feng, if you don't speak secretly, why do you come to the Marquis Mansion? But there is something from Lu Ge?"

Feng Yongwen smiled bitterly, as if he had a thousand words to say, shook his head and sighed,
"Back to the Marquis, it's not Lu Gelao's news. It's Xiaguan's private matter, or more precisely, the marriage of Xiaguan's daughter. I would like to ask the Marquis to help."

As soon as she heard that it was a marriage, Zhang Jinyu almost vomited after taking a sip of tea. How could she be involved in this? Maybe it was the daughter of the people who made the decision, but it was not her turn.

"Master Feng, are you kidding? If you want to ask about your beloved daughter's marriage, it's up to you to ask. I can't interfere, right?"

"Master Hou misunderstood."

Feng Yongwen hurriedly explained,
"Master Marquis, don't talk around in circles anymore. I am here to rely on you. I will try the case. Whatever you say, Marquis, I will cooperate with you. I just want to ask you one thing."

When Feng Yongwen said this, his face was heavy, which made Zhang Jinyu a little curious, good guy, so direct, what could the civil servant do?

"Master Feng, please tell me, as long as I can do it, I will never refuse."

Zhang Jinyu suddenly thought a lot. She was afraid that she could influence the Ning Guofu case, so of course she had to agree. Although the Marquis of Xiangyang was difficult for Wu Xun, he would not oppose him. Not to mention Kang Mengyu, the Imperial City Secretary Bian did not intervene in the trial, and the civil servants only needed to rely on themselves. Whether Jia Zhen lived or died, it was in the palm of his hand.

"Okay, thank you, Lord Marquis."

When Feng Yongwen saw Mr. Hou agreeing, he looked happy and excitedly told the whole story.

"Master Hou, the reason is because my daughter and Jiarong, the great-great-grandson of the Ningguo Mansion, made a verbal agreement to get married. Now that something happened in the Ningguo Mansion, the contract should not have been broken. But as the chief judge, how can I protect him? So please Lord Marquis, please save my daughter from this marriage."

As he spoke, Feng Yongwen's face turned red and he was ashamed to speak.

But Zhang Jinyu understood clearly. He just wanted to regret the marriage and then separate the relationship. He did it unethically and could be described as a white-eyed wolf. However, it is human nature to fly away when disaster strikes.

"Don't you just want to regret your marriage and put aside the relationship? I understand that the people in Ningguo Mansion are not very good. It's better to retreat, otherwise you will send your daughter to the wolf's den."

Zhang Jinyu felt this and said that she did not remember the other things written in the Red Mansions book, but Qin Keqing in the book was stripped to ashes by Jia Zhen. When she thought of this, she felt sick in her heart, Jia Zhen could not stay.

"Master Hou, you are right."

Feng Yongwen seemed to have met a close friend. He looked excited and could not speak.

Zhang Jinyu was surprised when he saw this. Isn't this a small matter? It's fine if he doesn't agree to the marriage. It was agreed verbally, but he didn't know whether he had written a marriage contract, so he asked,
"Master Feng, the marriage has been agreed. Has the marriage letter been written? It would be a bit troublesome if it was written. But as long as you are in Ningguo Mansion, I can find it for you."

Zhang Jinyu also thought about it, and asked the people from the Imperial City Department to search again, find the marriage certificate, and give it to the Feng family. It would be over.

"Master Marquis, my daughter's marriage was agreed verbally, and no marriage contract was written."

Feng Yongwen was frightened when he saw that Mr. Hou was so rude and hurriedly explained.

Now, it was Zhang Jinyu's turn to be puzzled. The marriage document had not been written, the agreement was verbal, and there was no basis for it. What else needed to be resolved? Looking at Feng Yongwen's anxious face, she asked,
"Mr. Feng is joking with me. There is no marriage certificate. If you don't admit the marriage, it will be fine. He, Ning Guofu, is talking nonsense and has no evidence. How can he come to confront you?"

Feng Yongwen was embarrassed and lamented,

"My Lord Marquis, if this matter was so simple, how could the official come to the Lord Marquis' house to ask for help overnight?

Although there is no marriage certificate, there is a matchmaker as guarantee, and even the entrance ceremony has been performed, so I am in a dilemma. "

"So, there's something wrong with that matchmaker. What's the reason?"

Zhang Jinyu thought about it for a while. Since there was no problem, he could still embarrass the dignified Dali Temple Prime Minister. He thought that the matchmaker in the middle was not simple, and he didn’t know who he was.
"Master Marquis Mingjian, although the matchmaker is not well-known, she has a great background. If the official's guess is correct, she should be the eldest princess, Her Royal Highness Zhou."

Zhang Jinyu's pupils shrank and she stared at Feng Yongwen's face. There was no emotion at all, but her face was full of helplessness and anxiety. It didn't look like she was lying. The eldest princess Zhou Xiangxue, why is it her again? What a coincidence.

"How did you know that the matchmaker was hers?"

After Zhang Jinyu finished speaking, she pointed to the north with her hand, where the eldest princess lived in seclusion.

"Master Marquis, I have seen the waist badge of the princess's house. When the matchmaker came into the house to hold the ceremony, it leaked out from the waist and was seen by the official. That's why I made this assumption. The affairs of the eldest princess back then were complicated, so The official is afraid, so he can only come here to ask the Marquis for help."

After Feng Yongwen said this, he stood up and bowed deeply to the Marquis.

Zhang Jinyu accepted it calmly, then helped Feng Yongwen up and patted his shoulder.

"Master Feng, don't worry. Tomorrow, I will accompany Master Feng to meet with the matchmaker for a while. It's really not possible. In three days, the Queen Mother wants to go to Jing'an Temple to offer incense. I will go visit the eldest princess. It's your business. Take care of it.”

"Thank you, Marquis, for your kindness. I will definitely keep it in my heart. I will obey the Marquis for all cases in the Ningguo Mansion. Even if I am not guilty, I will also sign and sign."

Feng Yongwen burst into tears when he saw Master Hou readily agreeing. He was looking for a way out for his little daughter. He was filled with surprises for a moment, but Zhang Jinyu shook his head.

"I have accepted the matter, but who told you that Jia Zhen of Ningguo Mansion is not guilty? He is guilty and treasonous."

"Uh, Lord Marquis, what do you mean?"

Feng Yongwen was stunned. What the Marquis meant was to punish the crime. Isn't this the same as what Mr. Lu Ge and the others meant? Could it be that...

"Jia Zhen is guilty, Ning Guofu is not guilty. Master Feng must distinguish priorities and inform me of all matters. Others can be interrogated as they should, I understand."

"Yes, I understand."

Rongguo Mansion,
On the west path,

Under the night,
The two beautiful figures hurriedly walked on the road. Ping'er was panting and chasing after them.

"Grandma, please slow down. It's dark, so be careful."

"oops!"

Before he finished speaking, he heard an exclamation from in front of him. Ping'er's face changed and he hurriedly stepped forward to help his second grandma.

"Grandma, my foot is sprained. I'll let you have a look."

"No, just support me and have a rest."

original,

Wang Xifeng in front was thinking about Mrs. You and Li Wan, and was anxious in her heart. She just walked forward. Although she paid attention to her steps, the night was dark, the path was slippery, and the fog was heavy. How could she walk steadily? If her feet slipped, she would sprain her feet.

Ping'er took off the second mistress's shoes and socks and looked after her with a lantern. All she could see was her white and tender feet. There were some redness and swelling on her ankles, which indicated that the skin and flesh had been injured. Fortunately, no muscles or bones had been injured.

"Grandma, why don't we go back first and come back tomorrow? Your foot is a little injured. When you go back, your servant will get some medicinal wine to rub it for you."

Ping'er supported Wang Xifeng and advised with concern,
Wang Xifeng turned her head with a serious expression, held Ping'er's arm and sighed,

"How to go back? It's not like you don't know about the affairs of the elder sister-in-law. You don't want to appease Mrs. You. If she discovers the good deeds of the elder sister-in-law and the Marquis, how do you explain it? Don't let outsiders know. You are so powerful in it. I know."

"Grandma, are you thinking too much? Maybe the Marquis didn't come."

Ping'er saw that the second mistress said it seriously and knew what it meant. But if the Marquis didn't come, wouldn't the fall be in vain?

"Stop talking nonsense, support me and keep walking. I've never met a man who doesn't cheat."

Wang Xifeng limped forward, expecting Marquis Luo Yun to be here. As for what happened, as long as her sister-in-law did it, Mrs. You would definitely hear that she was so far away from Heping'er that night, and she was so far away. Everyone outside the attic heard it clearly. Sister-in-law You was also a visitor, so how could she not know!
(End of this chapter)